{"id":27825,"date":"2023-02-25T07:00:53","date_gmt":"2023-02-25T01:30:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.globalindian.com\/youth\/\/?post_type=story&p=27825"},"modified":"2023-02-24T15:28:23","modified_gmt":"2023-02-24T09:58:23","slug":"basketball-player-ryan-agarwal-wishes-to-represent-india-in-the-american-landscape","status":"publish","type":"story","link":"https:\/\/old.globalindian.com\/youth\/story\/cover-story\/basketball-player-ryan-agarwal-wishes-to-represent-india-in-the-american-landscape\/","title":{"rendered":"Basketball player Ryan Agarwal wishes to represent India in the American landscape"},"content":{"rendered":"

(February 25, 2023)<\/strong> The news was as exciting as it was historic. One of the most prominent basketball teams in the USA, Dallas Mavericks, had picked Satnam Singh to be their team member, making him the first Indian-born player to be selected in an NBA draft in 2015. Little did the world know that Satnam’s entry in the NBA would open doors for an aspiring Indian American basketball player, Ryan Agarwal, who at the time was just another sixth grader at a Dallas middle school.<\/p>\n

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Now a Stanford freshman, Ryan is one of the only Indian-American players on the Division I level and wishes to represent India in the American basketball landscape. “Even as I play today, I just have to keep in mind the fact that I help represent such a big community, and only a few people have the ability to do what I\u2019m trying to do,\u201d the basketball player said in a recent interview, adding, “It\u2019s amazing to see how many people support me and have my back.” The Stanford player, who is also deemed as the rising star of US basketball, is fully aware that his game could push him to be greater on the court, but it doesn\u2019t pressure him. “Basketball is just kind of fun for me. I don\u2019t really feel like it\u2019s a burden on me,” the Global Indian<\/em><\/a> shared.<\/p>\n

A star in the making<\/strong><\/h5>\n

Ryan’s parents had emigrated from India, and he was born in a Dallas suburb. While the young kid never saw someone playing basketball or considered it as a career path, it was the selection of Satnam in the Dallas Mavericks that encouraged him to start playing. In 2017, Ryan and his cousin had a chance to watch Satnam in an NBA G League game, and it was there that Ryan realised he wanted to play just like him. And once he had made up his mind, there was no looking back. The youngster started playing at his school and was soon picked up to be a part of the local team. Standing at 6\u20197 and a slender 175 pounds, the Indian American player is a certified bucket.<\/p>\n

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